Two weeks ago, Homeland Security promised an immediate action to minimize long queues at US airports.
Some of these airports have already experienced relief. O'Hare Airport now claims there is an average of 15 minutes waiting time for security lines, said spokesperson for American Airlines, Leslie Scott.
However, TSA is yet to apply the same efficiency across all airports. TSA officers warn that despite the airport security efforts, passengers must still arrive at least two to three hours earlier than their flights. This is especially the expected rise of passenger numbers for Memorial Day getaway.
Peter Nefengger informed CNN, "We've done a tremendous amount to mitigate it, I think people will see large volumes at big airports because this is a record travel volume year."
Plans for shortening TSA security lines include hiring 768 TSA officers by June and adding more dog sniffing teams at the major US airports. TSA says one bomb-sniffing dog can check more than a thousand passengers daily.
Airlines and airports are also doing their best to minimize long airport security queues. They are hiring more contractors to inform passengers about the TSA screenings, including airport dos and don'ts. American, Delta, and Seattle-Tacoma Airport have spent millions for the customer service and information dissemination.
The three factors-more TSA officers, more canines and more information dissemination-seem to work to make traveling through airports a much better experience.
The 15-minute wait at Chicago is just an extreme example of the improvement. It is everybody's dream that the same experience would happen in other airports as well.
A month ago, a lot of passengers missed their flights because of the screening process. A lot of the flights were delayed too.
This article is copyrighted by Travelers Today, the travel news leader